Painted Spirits
by ProbablySatan
Summary: "Both The Painted Lady and the Blue spirit have graced our village tonight, and we are truly blessed." Only magic and the will of the Gods can bring two spirits together...and some villagers are lucky enough to witness the magic, wondering who will remove the mask first.


**an. This takes place in the third book, Fire, before Zuko joins the gaang. The gang is currently residing in a village i made up.**

_painted spirits_

_o n e_

—

"_The painted lady has come to Danping."_

_Whispers spread like wildfire._

—

Her fingers curve around the expanse of her eyelids, trailing vibrant red paint across it's path.

—

"_The Painted Lady is only a legend from the distant river village, south. She has not come to save my child, there is no river in the desert."_

_Voices of reason extinguish the flames._

—

Golden paint follows, a single crescent moon on her forehead, right above bright blue eyes. She puts on the hat next, the sheer material ghosts around her shoulders.

She stares at herself in the reflection of a small pond of water, the moon's light illuminating her figure. She closes her eyes, breathing deeply.

When she opens them again, she is no longer Katara of the Southern Watertribe, she is the Painted Lady, Water Spirit, protector of the innocent.

—

"_Water Spirits do not clash with fire. Don't you know that she and the Moon Spirit are closely related? Admiral Zhao had tried to kill the moon spirit, what makes you think she'll help?"_

_The moon only glows brighter with those words_

—

Yue smiles down on her.

The Painted Lady follows the path down to a local clinic, hidden at the edge of Danping. The clinic is built with flimsy wood and concrete and is about the size of a small shack. The windows are small, and the Lady peaks into them. The only light is a flickering candle, sitting on the edge of a table.

She enters the clinic without caution.

There are rows and rows of sickly children. An epidemic had swept across Danping only days before. The immune systems of the adults had been strong enough to ward off the disease, but smaller children were left to suffer.

From what she hears around the village, the disease is characterized by the build up of mucus and phlegm in the throat and lungs, so much so that it had made it hard for children to breathe.

The Painted Lady grabs a bucket and leans down to the closest child, a little girl of only three.

—

"_I knew she would come!"_

_The children wake one by one as if magic and mystery have suddenly shaken their bones until their eyes sprang open._

—

The Painted Lady places a hand over the little girls chest until it glows blue. Her eyebrows raise as she feels the build up in her lungs, and with expert hands, she bends the phlegm away, depositing it in the bucket next to her.

The child coughs quietly and sits up. Her eyes open and she stares at the Lady, golden orbs filled with quiet amazement. Her mouth forms a little 'O,' and she whispers, "Are you the Painted Lady?"

The Lady nods, her eyes glowing too.

"I'm Ayu." The little girl reaches to touch the Lady's face, her eyes widening at her darker skin tone and bright markings, "My mommy said you wouldn't come."

The Lady smiles and lays her hands over Ayu's fingers, "I will always come to those in need."

Ayu nods vehemently, her eyes serious, "She was so sad." Ayu pouts and her lips tremble, "I was sad too…I wasn't getting better and it was making her cry."

The Painted Lady ducks her head, feeling a surge of emotion in her chest. Ayu watches the woman's eyes glisten against the makings of tears. Ayu pats her cheeks, "You have pretty eyes." She then bites her lip, "Did you…did you fix me?"

The Lady nods, "I did."

Ayu ducks her head nervously. The Painted Lady cocks her head to the side, wondering what warranted this change in mood. She'd thought the child would've wanted to be well. Then Ayu looks up, her eyes bright with determination, "Will you fix my friends?" She whispers, "_Please_ Painted Lady?"

The Painted Lady smiles widely, "Of course." She stands gracefully and takes the child's hand into her own. "I will always come to those in need."

—

_Ayu says the Painted Lady came one night and used water magic to cure the rest of the children._

_Whispers spread like wild fire._

—

"Tch. The Painted Lady _again?_" Sokka grumbles the next morning, as they walk through the village for extra supplies. "Why do people believe in that spiritual mumbo jumbo?"

"I heard she saved a group of kids," Toph says, shrugging. "I don't see what you're problem is, Snoozles."

"It's just _weird_," Sokka complains, "It's like she's following us or something, and it's not like we don't already have enough spiritual stuff going on," He points an idle finger at Aang, who just grins back.

Aang just floats over to Katara, his grin widening even more, "Hey Katara," He begins, "What do _you_ think about the Painted Lady reappearing?"

He and Katara share a small grin and she looks away, shrugging. "I just think it's good that she'll always come to those in need."

They stop at a fruit stand where a little girl sits beside her mother. Golden eyes widen when they connect with Katara's blue ones. The water bending master watches the girl grow excited and she raises a finger to her lips, asking Ayu to keep quiet.

Ayu nods excitedly, happy to be the only one to know such a great secret.

The gaang buy their fruit in silence and leave Danping behind them without trouble.

—

_Mommy, I saw the Painted Lady again and she's beautiful._

—

**to be continued…**

**an. I don't remember if Sokka learned of the Painted Lady's true identity, but we'll pretend he doesn't for the sake of this fanfic.**

**review!1**


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